#75 | Psychedelics, Myth and the Soul's Descent - Simon Yugler

My guest today is Simon Yugler, a longtime friend who is a psychedelic therapist, educator, and the author of Psychedelics & the Soul—a mythic guide to deep healing, depth psychology, and cultural repair.

With a background steeped in Jungian thought and apprenticed to earth-based wisdom traditions, Simon walks the liminal spaces where myth and medicine meet, where the personal journey of the soul intertwines with the great unfolding of culture.

In our conversation, we explore the archetypal landscapes revealed through psychedelic experience—those luminous, perilous realms where the collective unconscious speaks in image and story. We trace the deep roots of mythopoetics and their role in personal and societal transformation, turning to tales such as the Inuit folktale Eagle’s Gift to illuminate what it means to undergo initiation in a world that has largely forgotten its rites of passage.

We also wade into the turbulent waters of modern politics, asking: What might a mythopoetic lens reveal about our current crises? How do we make sense of an era teetering between collapse and renewal? And what are the practical tools for integrating the peak experiences—psychedelic or otherwise—into the hard soil of daily life?

This episode is an invitation to journey into the deep mythic currents shaping our time and the soul’s quest to remember its place within them.

Simon’s Book Tour Dates

* Denver, 3/17 w/ Jaz Cadoch (@_jaz.ie) at Greenspaces

* Santa Fe, 3/22 w/ Michael Garfield (@michaelgarfield) at The Arc Bookstore

* LA, 3/27 w/ Tony Moss (venue to be confirmed)

* Bay Area (3/29, venue to be confirmed)

* Nevada City, 3/31, at Elixart

LINKS

* Simon Yugler’s Official Website

* Book - Psychedelics & The Soul: A Mythic Guide to Psychedelic Healing, Depth Psychology, and Cultural Repair

UPCOMING OFFERINGS:

Heads up, the doors open for the next round of The Deep Masculine, my 3 month online offering for men (and now women) to repattern your relationship to sex, soul & purpose. Save $100 with Early Bird rate - Ends March 13.

SHOW NOTES

00:00 Introduction to Archetypal Imagery

01:23 Meet the Host and Guest

01:58 Exploring Psychedelic Experiences

02:16 The Role of Myth in Personal and Societal Transformation

02:26 Modern Politics Through a Mythopoetic Lens

02:38 Practical Tools for Integrating Peak Experiences

02:47 Invitation to Journey into Mythic Currents

02:56 Show Support and Website Information

03:28 Welcome and Setting the Scene

04:45 Simon Yugler's Book and Its Journey

07:30 The Genesis of 'Psychedelics and the Soul'

10:42 Psychedelics and Mental Health: A Critical Perspective

16:30 The Importance of Integration Work

17:30 Mythopoetics and Depth Psychology

31:44 The Five Skills of Mythopoetic Integration

37:10 Assembling the Myths in 'Psychedelics and the Soul'

41:37 Interpreting Myths Through Masculinity

42:08 The Eagles’s Gift: An Inuit Folk Tale

44:48 The Hunter's Journey Begins

47:03 Encounter with the Fox Spirits

51:33 Meeting Mother Eagle

56:03 The Hunter's Return and Transformation

58:58 Reflections on Masculinity and Myth

01:06:51 Mythopoetic Lens on Contemporary Politics